OUT NOW: Raul Midón – If You Really Want + Tour Dates

The New York Times has called Raul Midón “a one-man band who turns a guitar into an orchestra and his voice into a chorus.” Now, with his exciting new album – If You Really Want, out now via Artistry Music/Mack Avenue – Midón’s voice and guitar ride the waves of an actual orchestra: the acclaimed Metropole Orkest, the GRAMMY® Award-winning Dutch ensemble that has collaborated with artists from Al Jarreau and Elvis Costello to Laura Mvula and Snarky Puppy. Midón – who earned his first GRAMMY nomination for Bad Ass and Blind, his Artistry Music/Mack Avenue album of 2017 – worked hand in glove on If You Really Want with another renowned GRAMMY winner and frequent Metropole Orkest collaborator: conductor-composer-arranger Vince Mendoza.

He created beautifully dynamic arrangements, inspired not only by the singer-guitarist’s melodies, harmonies and rhythms but by his lyrics, too. Alongside fresh versions of six favorites from past Midón albums, If You Really Want features four previously unrecorded songs: “If You Really Want,” “Ride On A Rainbow,” “Ocean Dreamer” and “All Love Is Blind.” This past spring, Midón performed in National Public Radio’s popular “Tiny Desk Concert” feature, with NPR prefacing the broadcast by saying: “Raul Midón lives in a world of sound – blind since birth, Midón’s interpretation of his surroundings is borderless. He sings with the passion of the best classic soul singers, and his instrumental chops stand alongside the most accomplished jazz musicians.”

If You Really Want includes choice numbers from across Midón’s career: “Sunshine (I Can Fly),” “Sittin’ In The Middle” and “Suddenly,” from his hit debut, State of Mind (2005); “Pick Somebody Up,” from A World Within A World (2007); “Everybody Deserves A Second Chance,” from Synthesis (2010); and “God’s Dream,” from Don’t Hesitate (2014). Then there are the four inspired new songs. “I wrote ‘Ride On A Rainbow’ especially for this album,” Midón explains. “The lyric is whimsical, being based on this thing I had as a kid of listening to the radio a lot and imagining that the sounds were riding on radio waves. I still have that in mind, so it seemed ideal for that feeling of riding the orchestra’s wave of sound. I play a six-string banjo on this song, including a solo.”

About “Ocean Dreamer,” he says: “I wrote this ballad expressly to sing with the orchestra, inspired by the sound of the strings on the Joni Mitchell LP Don Juan’s Reckless Daughter.” Midón had “All Love Is Blind” on hand for a while, he says, waiting for the right setting: “The melody and chords have this cinematic quality to them that I thought orchestration would maximize – and it did.” As for “If You Really Want,” Midón wrote that years ago, before he moved to New York in the hopes of making it. “I really had this song in my back pocket, and I’m glad I found the ideal place for it as the new album’s title track,” he says. “It’s about the power of positive thinking to fulfill your dreams, as I was able to do by becoming a professional musician, making records and touring the world. Here I am, recording with a great European orchestra. This, like so many things in my career, has been a dream come true.”

With a GRAMMY nomination under his belt and a batch of new songs already set to record next year, Midón feels like he’s “on a roll,” he says. “And right now, I’m thrilled with how If You Really Want came out. I hope my fans dig the album as much as I do, and it brings some new listeners along for the journey, too.”

VIDEO: “If You Really Want”

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I1keHX5wTyQ[/youtube]

“Raul Midón lives in a world of sound — blind since birth, Midón’s interpretation of his surroundings is borderless. He sings with the passion of the best classic soul singers, and his instrumental chops stand along side the most accomplished jazz musicians.” – NPR Music

“Midón showcases his flawless set of singing pipes, No gimmicks or frills to be found here; just sound, clear vocals.” – Pop Matters

“Regardless if it’s rehearsal or showtime, he’s also adroit in showmanship.” – NBC News

Tour Dates:

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